GATE — result, score, PSU recruitment + RTI (2026)

You missed a PSU shortlist by 0.8 marks and the recruitment portal shows nothing but “not selected”? A ₹10 RTI to that PSU pulls the cut-off, the interview score sheet and the selection criteria — the same transparency that works on IITs works on every government-owned recruiter.

GATE, the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering, is held by IISc and the seven older IITs in rotation, with a different institute organising each year. Its score opens three doors: M.Tech and research admission, PSU recruitment, and fellowships. In 2026 the organiser is IIT Guwahati.

• Public authorities. The organising IIT, every admitting institute and every PSU are public authorities under §2(h) of the RTI Act 2005. Their exam and selection records are “information” under §2(f).
• Exam records are disclosable. CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay, (2011) 8 SCC 497 — evaluated answer books are information; an examining body's rules cannot override RTI; you get copies and inspection, not re-evaluation. See our case note.
• Selection records too. Recruitment criteria, cut-offs and interview score sheets of public bodies are routinely directed to be disclosed — the same principle that runs through our case-law database.
• Deadlines and fees. Reply in 30 days under §7(1); first appeal under §19(1); second appeal to the CIC under §19(3). Application fee ₹10; copies ₹2 a page under the RTI Rules 2012.

• GATE is conducted jointly by IISc Bengaluru and the seven IITs; IIT Guwahati organises GATE 2026, and IIT Madras is announced as the GATE 2027 organiser (gate2027.iitm.ac.in).
• The GATE score is valid for three years from the date results are announced.
• Candidates may sit a combination of two papers — check the allowed pairs in the brochure.
• Master question papers and answer keys are published, followed by a short challenge window — use it before you reach for RTI.
• COAP 2026, the Common Offer Acceptance Portal for IIT M.Tech offers, is coordinated by IIT Roorkee (coap2026.iitr.ac.in). You still apply to each IIT separately; COAP handles the offers.
• PSUs recruit on GATE scores with their own process — the GATE 2026 site itself carries a notice that NPCIL will use GATE 2026 results for selection.

1. Download your response sheet and the answer keys the day they are published; the challenge window is only days long.
2. Challenge disputed questions in the window, paying the prescribed per-question fee on GOAPS.
3. For M.Tech offers, register on COAP 2026, apply to each IIT separately, and track your offer rounds there before assuming an error.
4. For scoring doubts after that, RTI to the CPIO of the organising IIT: your raw and normalised marks, session-wise distribution, and the formula as applied (template below).
5. For PSU selection doubts, RTI to that PSU's CPIO: the GATE cut-off used, interview marks of all candidates in anonymised form, and the selection criteria file.
6. No reply in 30 days = deemed refusal under §7(1). First appeal under §19(1) with the First Appeal Builder.

• Second appeal to the Central Information Commission under §19(3) within 90 days; track it with the Timeline Tracker.

• GATE registration number and scorecard
• Response sheet and answer-key PDFs for your paper
• PSU advertisement number and your application number, for selection matters
• COAP registration number, for admission matters
• ₹10 RTI fee — IPO or DD favouring the authority, or online payment where offered

• Asking for re-evaluation. CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay settles it: copies and inspection, never fresh marking.
• Skipping the challenge window. RTI works best on files that already went through the official remedy.
• Addressing the wrong IIT. Exam records sit with the organising institute; admission records with the admitting IIT; PSU records with the PSU. A mis-address costs five days in a §6(3) transfer.
• Demanding other candidates' names and marks. Personal details invite a §8(1)(j) exemption — ask for anonymised cut-offs and criteria instead.
• Missing the 30-day clock. Silence is deemed refusal, and the §19(1) window runs from that day.

To:
The Central Public Information Officer,
[Organising IIT / PSU name, address].

Subject: Information under §6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005 —
GATE 2026 [paper], Regn. No. [NUMBER]

Sir/Madam,

Kindly provide:

1. My raw marks and final (normalised) GATE score for
   [paper and session], with the normalisation formula as
   applied to my session.
2. The session-wise mean and standard deviation used for
   normalisation of that paper.
3. For [PSU post, advertisement no. ___]: the GATE-score
   cut-off applied for shortlisting, and my interview
   marks with the scoring rubric.
4. The file number and date of the approved selection
   criteria for the above recruitment.
5. Noting on the movement of my representation dated ___,
   if any.

I enclose the ₹10 fee by [IPO/DD no. ___]. Please supply the
information within 30 days under §7(1), failing which I will
file a first appeal under §19(1).

Yours faithfully,
[Name, address, phone, email]

Auto-fill this letter in the AI RTI Drafter, and grade any reply with the PIO Reply Checker.

Yes — a candidate may appear in a combination of two papers from the allowed pairs in the official brochure. Prepare for the extra breadth; both scores then work for you for three years.

Three years from the date the results are announced — so GATE 2026 scores work for admission cycles into 2029. PSUs set their own validity window in each advertisement, often shorter.

No re-evaluation. What exists: publication of your response sheet and the master answer keys, plus a short challenge window. After that, RTI gets you the marks and the method — not a fresh marking.

The Common Offer Acceptance Portal 2026, coordinated by IIT Roorkee, where IITs post M.Tech offers round by round and you accept, retain or reject them. Applications to each IIT are separate; COAP only manages the offers.

No. Each PSU runs its own process — some shortlist purely on GATE score, others add interviews and medicals. The GATE 2026 site itself notifies PSU users such as NPCIL. The common thread: every PSU is a public authority, so its criteria and cut-offs are RTI-able.

Grade it with the PIO Reply Checker. Unanswered points go into a first appeal under §19(1) within 30 days — do not file a fresh RTI on the same points.

₹10 for the application to any central public authority, including IITs and PSUs, under the RTI Rules 2012. State institutes follow state schedules — see State-wise RTI fees.

• Apply for GATE and engineering PG — 2026
• JEE Main + Advanced — results, answer keys, RTI
• RTI for tender evaluation
• CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay — case note
• All exam guides
• Full RTI Playbook
• The RTI Playbook book

• IIT Guwahati, GATE 2026 — https://gate2026.iitg.ac.in/
• COAP 2026, IIT Roorkee — https://coap2026.iitr.ac.in/
• IIT Madras, GATE 2027 — https://gate2027.iitm.ac.in/
• CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay, (2011) 8 SCC 497 — https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1519371/
• RTI Act 2005 and State-wise RTI fees

Last reviewed: 26 August 2026. Verified the organising institute, three-year score validity and two-paper rule against the official IIT Guwahati GATE 2026 portal, and COAP 2026 coordination against the IIT Roorkee COAP portal.